Monday, September 15, 2008

Dewitt C. Foreman

Dewitt C. Foreman was born January 3, 1832, in New York, the son of Nathaniel (b. 1796) and Lucy (b. 1797).

New York natives Nathaniel and Lucy (or Lany or Lena) were presumably married there. In any case, Dewitt came to Dewitt with his family sometime around 1834 and probably resided there until the war; by 1860 Nathaniel and his wife were living in Dewitt, Clinton County, Michigan.

Dewitt was 29 years old and probably living in Clinton County, Michigan, when he enlisted as a Fifer in Company G on May 10, 1861. By mid-Summer he was serving in the Regimental Band. He was reported to have been promoted to Principal Musician in the field and was mustered out of service on June 20, 1864.

Dewitt also reportedly served in Company I, Sixteenth U.S. infantry and Companies F & K, Eleventh U.S. infantry. In any case, he reentered the service as a private on October 8, 1864, in Company G, Sixty-fourth Ohio infantry, probably for one year, and was mustered in the same day. He was mustered out presumably with the company on October 11, 1865, at Victoria, Texas.

Dewitt eventually returned to Michigan. By 1870 he was working as a farmer and living with his mother, along with the Charles Reed family in Wacousta, Dewitt Township, Clinton County.

He married New York native Harriet (M. (1838-1922) on July 3, 1871, and they had at least one child: Lana or Lena (b. 1874); Harriet had been married at least once before and had two daughters by her previous marriage.

By 1880 Dewitt was working as a carpenter and living with his wife and daughter on Pleasant Street in Grand Ledge, Eaton County; also living with them was his stepdaughter Henrietta (b. 1866). Dewitt was living in Grand Ledge in 1888 and in Grand Ledge’s First Ward in 1894.
In 1882 he applied for and received a pension (no. 414253).

Dewitt died of a bowel obstruction on October 12, 1910, at his home in Grand Ledge and was buried Oakwood cemetery, Grand Ledge: 5-5-5 .

In 1910 his widow applied for and received a pension (no. 721933). In 1912 one D. M. Forman was reported as a member of the Old Third Michigan Infantry Association.

1 comment:

Brenda said...

Hi, I really love the work you do and am collecting data on 2100+ CW men of the Grand Traverse Region (some neighboring counties). I see you are saying Walton is in Mecosta County. I just did a rootsweb town search and the only walton is

City State County
Walton MI GrandTraverse
WaltonJunction MI GrandTraverse

Walton Junction is a street light now about 4 miles from Fife Lake

Walton is about 5ish miles from Fife Lake. Doesn't even have a store anymore or tavern. ;) Just thought you might like to know so you could check it out.

Thanks for the reading!

Brenda
kingsley@aol.com
gtags79.blogspot.com
gtregion.blogspot.com